In December 2025, I blogged about a Hen Harrier that had been found poisoned on a grouse moor somewhere in North Yorkshire, 11 months earlier in January 2025.
There hadn’t been any media coverage of this illegal killing at all – no press releases or appeals for information from North Yorkshire Police, no comment from the National Wildlife Crime Unit’s Hen Harrier Taskforce, nothing from anyone.
I found out about the poisoning by scrutinising a Health & Safety Executive database, which had the following spreadsheet entry:
HSE Ref number 107/913. Confirmed poisoning, North Yorkshire, January 2025. Chemicals Bendiocarb, Carbofuran, Isophenphos, Alphachloralose. Notes: ‘A dead Hen Harrier was found on a grouse moor. Residues of Bendiocarb, Carbofuran, Isophenphos and Alphachloralose were found in the samples analysed, which is an abuse of these compounds. Case closed as passed to the Police‘.
Given the toxic combination of poisons, often referred to as the ‘Nidderdale Cocktail’ due to its frequency of use in the area, I mused that this Hen Harrier was likely to have been poisoned in Nidderdale, although it wasn’t conclusive evidence as in more recent years the Nidderdale Cocktail has also been detected in other parts of the country, perhaps indicating a gamekeeper moving from this region to work in another.
News then emerged in an RSPB press release in January 2026 that this Hen Harrier was a young female named Ataksak (named after an Inuit Goddess, the ‘ruler of the sky’) and she was carrying a satellite tag, fitted by the RSPB in Bowland in 2024.
It turned out that Ataksak was the Hen Harrier that gamekeeper Racster Dingwall and his accomplices had discussed shooting and killing as it came in to a roost site on Grassington Moor in the Yorkshire Dales National Park one evening in October 2024, but they then chose instead to “fleg it” (scare it off with warning shots) because they deduced it was wearing “a box” (a satellite tag) and killing it would draw unwanted attention from the authorities to their grouse moor.
The RSPB’s press release included details of the area where Ataksak had been found poisoned but still didn’t name a location:
‘The area where Ataksak’s body was found is recognised as a bird of prey persecution hotspot. In the last ten years 25 confirmed bird of prey persecution incidents have been recorded in this area, including Ataksak. These included four Hen Harriers, 13 Red Kites and five Buzzards. A satellite tagged Hen Harrier also disappeared in this area in 2024‘.
When I first wrote about this poisoned Hen Harrier in December 2025, I said I’d submitted a number of Freedom of Information requests about the Police investigation, some 11 months after she’d been found poisoned.
First, here’s a redacted post mortem report on Ataksak from FERA (Food and Environment Research Agency). It’s pretty conclusive:
The PM report gives the location as ‘Fountains Earth’ in North Yorkshire, and a four-figure grid reference SE1371. This places Ataksak’s death in Nidderdale, a well known raptor-poisoning hot spot:
The parish of Fountains Earth, Nidderdale (google maps)
Given the high toxicity of the chemicals used to poison her, I’d think it quite likely that Ataksak was poisoned very close to the spot her corpse was found.
The PM report is dated 28 April 2025, some three months after Ataksak was poisoned.
So what progress had North Yorkshire Police made with its investigation in to this crime?
Well, apparently very little.
According to my sources, as of January 2026, a full year after Ataksak’s body had been found, and nine months after the conclusive post mortem report, North Yorkshire Police hadn’t even bothered to conduct a search, despite being encouraged to do so by the National Wildlife Crime Unit and Natural England.
And therein lies the problem. The responsibility for investigatory decision-making lies entirely with the local police force. Experienced officers from the National Wildlife Crime Unit (including specialists involved with the Hen Harrier Taskforce) and specialist poisoning experts from Natural England can only offer their assistance; if the local police force chooses not to accept those offers of help, for whatever reason, there’s nothing they can do about it.
How bonkers is that? Hen Harrier persecution is a national wildlife crime priority, there’s a national Taskforce that’s being funded (with tax payers’ money) to deal with it, but it doesn’t have the authority to investigate these crimes unless the local police force agrees to it.
This isn’t a problem in some areas, where local police forces are only too happy to accept specialist help and support, but it is definitely a problem in North Yorkshire (e.g. see here), and in several other counties in northern England where raptor persecution is known to take place, particularly on driven grouse moors.
I submitted Freedom of Information requests to the NWCU and to Natural England about the status of the investigation into the poisoning of Ataksak but surprise, surprise, both refused to release any information, stating the information has been withheld by exception, citing regulation 12(5)(b)(g) — Course of justice, inquiries & fair trial.
There is no ‘course of justice’ in this case, because North Yorkshire Police has been sitting on its hands for over a year. Rather than holding them to account, these agencies are simply providing them with cover.
Further to this morning’s blog (here), Natural England has now formally confirmed its tighter restrictions on the release of non-native Pheasants and Partridges on, or within 500m, of Special Protection Areas (SPAs) in England, due to the continuing very high risk of spreading Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (Bird Flu).
As expected, General Licence 45 (the licence under which restricted numbers of gamebirds can be released on or within 500m of Special Protection Areas, which was introduced after a legal challenge by Wild Justice about damage to protected sites by gamebirds) will remain withdrawn this year, which means that if gamebird shoot operators want to release non-native Pheasants or Partridges on or next to SPAs, they will first need to apply for an individual licence from Natural England.
The only SPA where individual licence applications are likely to be successful with standard mitigation is the marine SPA in Cornwall, Falmouth Bay to St Austell Bay.
Natural England has indicated the SPAs where an individual licence may be granted (with restrictions on the number of birds that can be released) but probably with a delayed gamebird release date (of either 1 Sept or 1 Oct 2026) as follows:
SPAs where applications are likely to be successful with delayed release
Ashdown Forest (1 September)
East Devon Heaths (1 September)
Great Yarmouth North Denes (1 October)
Greater Wash (1 October)
North York Moors (1 September)
Northumberland Marine (1 October)
Outer Thames Estuary (1 October)
Peak District Moors (South Pennine Moors Phase 1) (1 September)
Porton Down (1 October)
Solent and Dorset Coast (1 October)
South Pennine Moors Phase 2 (1 September)
Thorne and Hatfield Moors (1 September)
For any other SPA not listed above, Natural England states it is likely to refuse an individual licence. For the first time, this includes the large Breckland SPA in Norfolk/Suffolk, which will affect a number of large estates that are (in)famous for their Pheasant and Partridge shoots.
Stand-by for representatives of the gamebird shooting industry proclaiming world-ending rural Armageddon in this area as a result of the new restrictions.
Natural England’s bulletin also states that a significant number of licensees failed to provide returns within the required time limit last year, and that this is an offence under the Wildlife & Countryside Act. What a surprise. Whether there’ll be any follow-up enforcement action remains to be seen.
Here is a copy of Natural England’s gamebird licensing bulletin, published today:
An investigation has been launched into alleged breaches of mandatory bird flu biosecurity regulations at Guy Ritchie’s Pheasant and Partridge shoot at Ashcombe Estate in Wiltshire, according to an article in The Times today.
Article on page 3 of The Times, 9 March 2026 (photo by Ruth Tingay)
Undercover investigators from Dale Vince’s Green Britain Foundation reportedly installed covert cameras on the estate in November 2025 and claim to have recorded multiple breaches of the mandatory biosecurity measures introduced last year to prevent the spread of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza.
The investigators say they have footage of grain feeders being emptied on to the ground and of food being emptied directly on to open ground, instead of being covered to reduce access to wild birds.
Covert footage appears to show a grain feeder being emptied on to the ground in front of a Red-legged Partridge release pen (screen grab from Green Britain Foundation recording)
Covert footage appears to show a man spreading food on open ground (screen grab from Green Britain Foundation recording)
Investigators also claim the footage showed no visible daily inspection or cleaning of feeding areas, which are all mandatory requirements.
County Council Trading Standards Departments are responsible for enforcement of the mandatory Avian Influenza biosecurity regulations and Wiltshire County Council has opened an investigation in to the alleged offences at Ashcombe Estate.
If the Council’s Trading Standards Department is satisfied that the breaches did occur, and the estate’s management accepts that it committed the offences, then it’s likely the estate would only be given a verbal warning.
Similar breaches of the mandatory biosecurity regulations were confirmed at a gamebird shoot at Ramsholt, Suffolk last year (next to the Deben Estuary SPA, so arguably a much more sensitive site than the Ashcombe Estate) but even so, only a formal verbal warning was issued and this, we were told, is standard practice for first time offenders, even though breaching the regulations is a criminal offence.
More restrictions are expected to be announced for the release of gamebirds on/near Special Protection Areas (SPAs) in England in 2026.
Regular blog readers will recall that in March last year, Defra announced that it would not be issuing General Licence 45 (GL45 – the licence under which restricted numbers of gamebirds can be released on or within 500m of Special Protection Areas, which was introduced after a legal challenge by Wild Justice about damage to protected sites by gamebirds) in 2025 because:
“It is currently not possible to rule out the risk of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) (which is currently very high) spreading to the bird features present on SPAs”.
Natural England (responsible for individual licences) went further, and on 14 April 2025 it advised the gamebird shooting industry that although they could still apply for individual licences for 2025 gamebird releases on or close to SPAs, some licences would only be permitted with a delayed release date for the poults, whereas licences for many other SPAs would be unlikely to be issued at all.
An unlawful Red-legged Partridge release pen at the Deben Estuary SPA, Suffolk in 2025, where an individual licence had been refused (photo by Ruth Tingay)
Given the still very high risk of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI), I’ve been expecting General Licence 45 to remain withdrawn this year.
I’ve now seen a draft notification written by Natural England which is expected to be published this week (thanks to the blog reader who sent me a copy) that details the further restrictions that are anticipated for the 2026 gamebird shooting season.
The draft notification states that General Licence 45 will remain withdrawn this year (good) and that there will be even more restrictions than there were last year (good).
Individual licences will again be available for some SPAs, with a delayed gamebird release date (either 1 Sept or 1 Oct depending on the site) to protect any wild birds that otherwise would be present on the SPA over the summer and could be at risk from the spread of HPAI from released gamebirds.
However, this year for the first time, Natural England has been assessing the risk of Avian Influenza to overwintering Woodlark populations, as well as breeding populations which are already a ‘feature’ of several SPAs.
As a result of these concerns, Natural England has concluded that ‘adverse effects on site integrity’ cannot be ruled out for the following sites: Breckland SPA, Sandlings SPA, Thames Basin Heaths SPA, Thursley, Hankley and Frensham Commons (Wealden Heaths Phase 1) SPA, Wealden Heaths Phase 2 SPA. For this reason, it is unlikely that licences will be granted for these SPAs in 2026.
This is a significant change to the 2025 restrictions, especially on the large Breckland SPA in Norfolk and Suffolk which is known to be an area of intense gamebird releases.
Breckland SPA in Norfolk/Suffolk (from Defra’s Magic Map)
A total ban on the annual release of millions of non-native gamebirds (Pheasants & Red-legged Partridges) would be better but increased restrictions can still be considered progress.
I’ll await the publication of Natural England’s formal notification with interest.
UPDATE 17.00hrs: Natural England confirms tighter restrictions on gamebird releases on/near to Special Protection Areas in England (here)
Following the announcement from Defra in July 2025 that the Government aimed to introduce legislation by the summer of 2026 to ban the sale and use of toxic lead ammunition for ‘live quarry shooting’ over a three-year transition period (see here), the start date for the ban has now been confirmed as 1st April 2029.
A new Statutory Instrument was laid before Parliament on 3rd March 2026 and will come in to force on 1st April 2026. This is The REACH (Amendment) Regulations 2026, which determine the start date for the ban which will apply in England, Wales and Scotland.
The REACH Regulation (Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals) aims to ensure a high level of protection for human health and the environment against the harmful effects of chemical substances.
The SI details those who will be exempt from the ban (e.g. elite athletes, military, police, Border Force). The ban covers shotgun cartridges (all calibres) and rifle ammunition for live quarry shooting in calibres of 6.17 mm (.243 and above).
Importantly, the ban includes not just the sale of toxic lead ammunition, but also the use of it. That means that once the ban is in force, it will be a criminal offence to use toxic lead ammunition, regardless of whether it was bought prior to the ban.
Let’s hope that all those gamebird shooters who are currently bragging on social media about how they’ve already begun to stockpile their toxic lead ammunition (with a clear intention to use it once the ban commences) get the message.
In this week’s edition of Shooting Times, ‘the official weekly journal of BASC’, there’s a three-page article all about trapping, apparently ‘balancing tradition and modernity with legal traps and snares to control predatory vermin‘.
The article isn’t attributed to a specific author, but was presumably approved by a sub-editor and/or the managing editor, who somehow missed this embarrassing blunder:
For the avoidance of doubt, snaring was banned in Wales in 2023 and was the first country in the UK to do so. Scotland then followed in 2024, under the Wildlife Management and Muirburn (Scotland) Act.
An outbreak of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (Bird Flu) was confirmed yesterday at a large gamebird rearing farm in North Yorkshire.
A 3km Protection Zone and a 10km Surveillance Zone have been declared around Westfield Farms, near Cropton and all gamebirds on the premises will be humanely killed.
Westfield Farms Ltd, whose latest accounts show a value of over £5.3 Million, produces Pheasants, Red-legged Partridges, Grey Partridges and Mallards for the gamebird shooting industry.
Some of you may recognise the name Westfield Farms. In 2015, Director Michael Wood successfully overturned a conviction for permitting the use of a pole trap at this gamebird rearing facility.
North Yorkshire Police, assisted by the RSPB, had seized a total of five pole traps that had been placed around the rearing pens, and two employees received police cautions (they weren’t prosecuted).
However, Mr Wood’s conviction was later overturned on appeal because the prosecution couldn’t demonstrate that Mr Wood had seen the pole trap that he was filmed driving past in his vehicle (see here).
One of the five illegal pole traps seized from Westfield Farms in 2014 (photo by RPSB)
This is the 95th confirmed outbreak of Avian Influenza in the UK since October 2025 (the outbreak season is recorded from 1st October to 30 September each year).
This surpasses the 82 recorded outbreaks during the entire 2024/2025 outbreak season.
Defra will need to decide imminently whether it will issue General Licence 45 for this year’s shooting season. This is the General Licence that permits the release of gamebirds on or within 500m of a Special Protection Area (SPA), which was introduced after a legal challenge by Wild Justice about damage to protected sites by gamebirds.
Last year, Defra withdrew GL45 due to the high risk of spreading Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza. Given the high number of reported HPAI outbreaks since Oct 2025 (95 at the time of writing), I anticipate Defra will not issue GL45 this year.
If that happens, then it will fall to Natural England to make decisions about issuing individual licences to permit the release of gamebirds on/close to SPAs.
Last year, Natural England took a sensible and precautionary approach and refused licences at many sites (see here), although as we’ve seen, some shoot operators might think the law doesn’t apply to them and the consequences are so minimal it’s probably worth them taking the risk.
On 10 February 2026, NatureScot imposed a three-year General Licence restriction on Raeshaw Estate in the Scottish Borders (and on neighbouring Watherston Wood, which is understood to be under separate management to Raeshaw), in relation to the shooting/killing of Golden Eagle ‘Merrick’ in October 2023.
Camera trap photo of golden eagle Merrick, from South Scotland Golden Eagle Project
Following the announcement, a representative of Raeshaw Estate, believed to be under the management of a company owned by ‘grouse moor guru’ Mark Osborne, claimed the restriction was “wholly unjustified” and said the estate intended to appeal the decision (see here).
According to NatureScot’s Framework for implementing General Licence restrictions,
‘Where a decision is made to impose a restriction, the Affected Parties will be entitled to appeal the decision within 14 days of the date of the decision. An appeal must be made in writing to the Head of Licensing and must set out the grounds upon which it is proposed that the appeal be allowed.
‘An appeal shall have the effect of suspending the restriction from the date the appeal is received by the Head of Licensing until the date of the Decision on Appeal’.
As the restriction notification has now been removed from NatureScot’s website, I assume that Raeshaw Estate has lodged a written appeal and did so within the 14 day time limit.
This means that Raeshaw Estate can, until further notice, go back to using General Licences 1, 2 & 3 to lawfully kill hundreds if not thousands of certain bird species (e.g. crows) on the estate without having to report its activities to anybody.
NatureScot’s Framework states that the Head of Licensing will seek to make a decision on the appeal within four weeks. Let’s hope it doesn’t drag on any longer than that.
It is also apparent that the representatives of Watherston Wood have also lodged an appeal, although as far as I’m aware, the killing of so-called ‘pest’ bird species doesn’t take place in the wood anyway so perhaps the appeal has been made as a matter of principle rather than an attempt to reinstate the use of General Licences 1, 2 and 3.
Screen grab from Who Owns Scotland website, annotated by RPUK, showing the proximity of Merrick’s last known location and the Raeshaw Estate (shaded in blue)
General Licence restrictions, which are based on a civil burden of proof if there is insufficient evidence for a criminal prosecution, were introduced by then Environment Minister Paul Wheelhouse in 2014 as a way of tackling the continuing persecution of birds of prey on gamebird shooting estates across Scotland.
These restrictions don’t stop the sanctioned estates from shooting gamebirds, nor do they limit their gamebird management activities other than requiring the estate to complete a bit of paperwork, but they were specifically designed to act as a ‘reputational driver’. I think it’s fair to say that Wheelhouse’s intentions were good but ultimately have proved ineffective.
This is an unprecedented second General Licence restriction imposed on Raeshaw Estate.
Raeshaw Estate was one of the first estates to receive a General Licence restriction in 2015, based on ‘clear police evidence’ that wildlife crimes had been committed there although there was insufficient evidence to prosecute any individual (see here). Representatives of Raeshaw Estate applied for a judicial review of NatureScot’s decision but the Court of Session upheld NatureScot’s procedures and ruled them lawful (here).
Whilst under that first General Licence restriction, Raeshaw Estate applied for, and was granted, a number of ‘individual licences’ so the gamekeepers could continue to kill certain species as part of the estate’s grouse moor management plan (quite a lot of birds were lawfully killed – see here).
However, in 2017 the individual licence was revoked by NatureScot due to non-compliance issues and more suspected wildlife crime offences (see here).
I await NatureScot’s decision on Raeshaw Estate’s latest appeal with interest.
UPDATE 7 April 2026: Raeshaw Estate loses appeal against 3-yr General Licence restriction in relation to Golden Eagle Merrick being ‘shot & killed’ (here)
Two days ago, a jury at the High Court in Glasgow returned a guilty verdict in the trial of former Head Gamekeeper David Campbell, 77, who had been accused of murdering his ex-colleague from Edradynate Estate, Brian Low, after ambushing him and shooting him in the chest and neck with a shotgun on a remote woodland track near Aberfeldy on 16 February 2024.
Former Head Gamekeeper and now convicted murderer David Campbell. (Photo by Police Scotland)
The circumstances of this horrific murder were shocking and understandably Campbell’s conviction made the headlines in widespread news coverage yesterday. For example:
But for many living in the rural area around Edradynate Estate, near Aberfeldy, Perthshire, and those who have been investigating wildlife crime on Edradynate Estate for decades, Campbell’s conviction came as no surprise whatsoever.
During his 33-years of employment as Head Gamekeeper on Edradynate Estate (1984-2017), Campbell was at the centre of at least 22 police investigations into the alleged poisoning, shooting and trapping of birds of prey, as well as firearms offences. I say alleged – what I mean is that there is no question whatsoever that raptors were illegally killed on that estate, over a period of three decades, but nobody was ever convicted for any of it and David Campbell had always denied any involvement.
Here’s a blog I wrote in 2017, after the Crown Office had dropped another prosecution against an Edradynate Estate gamekeeper relating to the alleged poisoning of Buzzards in 2015, despite a plea from Police Scotland to pursue a prosecution:
Edradynate Estate has been at the centre of investigations for alleged wildlife crime for a very, very long time. In 2002, the estate’s Head gamekeeper and underkeeper were arrested and charged with nine offences relating to the use of poisoned baits and also bird cruelty, including the use of spring traps. However, on 22 July 2004, two years after the original arrests and 13 court hearings later, the Crown Office dropped the case (sound familiar?). A COPFS spokeswoman later admitted that the time taken to prepare the case had been a major factor in the decision to scrap it (see here).
In July 2010, a poisoned red kite was discovered. An un-named gamekeeper from the estate (who said he was a member of the Scottish Gamekeepers’ Association) claimed the bird had been ‘planted’. It also emerged that in addition to the poisoned red kite, over the previous 15 years, 9 buzzards, 2 sparrowhawks, 2 crows, 1 gull, 1 tawny owl, 1 pole cat, and 1 domestic cat, had all been found poisoned in the area. Twelve poisoned baits (Carbofuran, Mevinphos and Alphachloralose) had also been discovered (see here). Nobody was prosecuted for any of this.
In March 2011, two poisoned buzzards, two poisoned crows, and two Carbofuran-laced pheasant baits were discovered. A gamekeeper was taken for questioning but he was later released without charge (here).
In February 2012 an Edradynate Estate gamekeeper was charged with a number of alleged firearms and explosives offences (see here). However, in September 2012 the Crown deserted the case without providing an explanation (see here). Gosh, this is becoming quite a habit, isn’t it?
Writing about the Crown Office’s decision in 2017 to drop the case against Campbell for the alleged poisoning of Buzzards on Edradynate in 2015, former Police Wildlife Crime Officer Alan Stewart wrote on his blog,
‘This has been the fourth case in relation to the poisoning of raptors submitted to the fiscal against the same accused. I submitted the first Edradynate case in 1994 but it was always going to be short of evidence of identification. The fiscal sat on it in case anything further was discovered that would help the case but had to drop it at the end of the time bar, which at that time was 6 months‘
and
‘I was involved in a further search, which I think was in the month of March. Two or three dead (poisoned) buzzards were found and there were a couple of pheasant baits recovered as well. No pesticides were found but we took samples from the accused’s vehicle and from various items of his clothing. Traces of pesticide were found in the vehicle and on several items of clothing, including from an item he was wearing when he was detained. It was a reasonable circumstantial case, which I thought would be clinched with the pesticide traces on the clothing worn by the accused. I suspect that identification, which is always crucial, was again considered to be the stumbling block. This case was eventually dropped as well‘
and
‘Between 1993 and 2011 I am aware of 14 poisoned baits involving the banned pesticides carbofuran, mevinphos and alpha-chloralose being found on Edradynate estate. There have also been 31 poisoned victims including 17 buzzards, 4 carrion crows, 2 sparrowhawks, 2 tawny owls, a domestic cat, a common gull, a red kite and a polecat found either on the estate or very close to its boundary. I doubt if anyone would disagree that this number of baits and victims were the very tip of the iceberg. I doubt also if anyone would think that someone was ‘coming in off the street’ and dumping all these dead creatures on the estate to cause trouble‘.
In 2018, Police Scotland issued an appeal for information after three dogs and two Buzzards were ‘deliberately poisoned’ between October 2017 and April 2018 around the Edradynate and Pitnacree Estates area (see here). Campbell was no longer working on the estate by this time (see discussion below) and there was local speculation that someone was trying to set up the new Head Gamekeeper but as far as I’m aware, nobody was prosecuted. I’m not aware of any further raptor persecution incidents at Edradynate since the new gamekeeping team was employed.
Alongside the reports of rampant raptor persecution at Edradynate over many, many years, there were stories relating to Campbell’s alleged threatening behaviour towards locals. The court heard some of that testimony during Campbell’s murder trial, although those charges were dropped on the last day of his trial. Further evidence of Campbell’s alleged behaviour was reported by Alan Stewart in one of his books – see here, and this is really worth a read.
It is apparent that many locals were terrified of Campbell, too scared to speak out for fear of retaliation of what he might do to them, or their beloved pets. One individual I’ve spoken to, who wishes to remain anonymous, tells a story of dogs being poisoned and shot and a claim about how Campbell was allegedly seen drowning a dog in a peat hag after it didn’t do as it was told.
Some speak of Campbell’s alleged ‘reign of terror’ in this small rural community and if their testimonies are true, it paints a picture of violence being normalised and being beyond the reach of the law.
The only time Edradynate Estate was held to account was when SNH (now NatureScot) imposed a three-year General Licence restriction in 2017 (see here), assumed to be in relation to the alleged poisoning of Buzzards in 2015 – the case that the Crown Office refused to prosecute.
One of the poisoned Buzzards found in 2015 (photo RPUK)
Despite the widely publicised and appalling catalogue of wildlife crime on Edradynate Estate, reported over several decades, the game shooting industry apparently turned a blind eye.
The Scottish Gamekeepers Association accepted at least two donations from the estate owner, Michael Campbell (no relation to gamekeeper David Campbell and recently deceased); one in 2014 and one in 2015. Surely the SGA was aware of the long history of allegations made about this estate? Perhaps they didn’t care. As there hadn’t been a single conviction they could conveniently ignore the allegations and continue to accept the donations and continue to sit around the table at so-called ‘partnership’ meetings claiming to be doing all they could to eradicate raptor persecution.
Edradynate Estate was featured in the Fieldsports magazine in 2014, where one of the named guns was Robbie Douglas-Miller – surely not this one?
In 2020 Edradynate Estate was endorsed by the British Game Alliance, the game shooting industry’s own ‘assurance’ scheme (at the time), membership of which is supposed to indicate ‘rigorous and ethical standards’.
Screen grab from Edradynate Estate website 2020
And in 2023, the Game & Wildlife Conservation Trust (GWCT) accepted an auction donation from Edradynate Estate owner Michael Campbell with an estimated value of £2,500.
By February 2017, David Campbell’s employment as Head Gamekeeper at Edradynate Estate had ended, reportedly after his relationship with owner Michael Campbell had deteriorated and he was ‘removed from his job‘. Later that year David Campbell was charged with maliciously poisoning game cover crops on the estate as an ‘act of revenge’, a charge he denied, and of which he was ultimately cleared after the court ruled the case against him had not been proven beyond reasonable doubt (here).
In the sentencing remarks after gamekeeper Campbell’s recent conviction for murder, Judge Lord Scott said this:
“You have no previous convictions. This appalling and senseless act of extreme wickedness casts a shadow over what seems to have been a long life spent by you in gainful employment and some benefit to the community“.
I do wonder on what background information Lord Scott based this statement. Whilst it’s true that Campbell had no previous convictions, it is indisputable that he was a suspect in multiple crime investigations spanning several decades, and that many in the local community lived in fear of him. And at some point his firearms and shotgun licences had been revoked, presumably on evidence that his suitability was questioned and/or he was considered a risk to public safety.
I understand that following Campbell’s murder conviction, Alan Stewart is preparing a new book. I also understand that a TV production company was granted permission to film during the trial inside Glasgow’s High Court for a documentary about this case.
According to an exclusive article in The Courier yesterday, David Campbell is expected to mount an appeal against his murder conviction and it is anticipated that he will lodge formal paperwork with the Court of Appeal in the coming days.
Stepping away from the tragic murder of Brian Low, there are wider, more general implications to consider.
It is extensively evidenced that there’s a strong link between violence towards animals and violence towards humans. I think ‘violence towards animals’ in this context often refers to issues of illegal animal cruelty (e.g. Badger baiting, putting pets inside microwaves etc) but personally I would also define the routine duties of a gamekeeper as qualifying as ‘violence towards animals’, even though much of this activity is still considered legal in the UK.
I fully accept that some people will disagree with this opinion, and may argue that those who have been granted firearms/shotgun licences, as most (all?) gamekeepers have, are subject to rigorous police checks of their character and suitability. However, you’ve only got to look at the number of wildlife crimes that include the use of a firearm/shotgun, let alone the murder of innocent people by firearm certificate holders, to know that the system isn’t fit for purpose.
I recently read an analysis produced by the National Wildlife Crime Unit (NWCU) about polycriminality in wildlife crime offenders in the UK, which suggested that a significant proportion (59% of offenders) are also linked to violent offending against humans, ranging from low level common assaults to attempted murder, murder and kidnap. (Unfortunately I don’t think this report is available in the public domain).
Wildlife & Countryside LINK is using this analysis to push for a series of recommendations for the government to improve policing resources for tackling wildlife crime, which in turn should increase public safety as well as the safety of wildlife and the environment.
Raptor Persecution UK 